Former Michelin-starred chef Paul Ripley returns to work with Rick Stein

Former Michelin-starred chef Paul Ripley has joined Rick Stein's restaurant group in Cornwall as head chef of the Seafood Bar in Falmouth.

Ripley first worked for Rick and Jill Stein 20 years ago as head chef of the Seafood Restaurant in Padstow, before leaving to open his own restaurant, Ripley's in St Merryn, where he held a Michelin star from 2003 to 2009. He closed the restaurant in December 2008, putting it up for sale, and it is still on the market.

Ripley then became chef-proprietor of the St Kew Inn pub in Wadebridge in 2008, a St Austell pub, but the business relationship with the brewery came to an end last summer.

He has now returned to work with Stein, becoming head chef at the Seafood Bar in Falmouth, which is located above Rick Stein's Fish and Chip Restaurant. The restaurant was Stein's first Cornish venture outside Padstow where he runs four restaurants, a pub, a cookery school and three shops.

Ripley told Caterersearch.com he was excited to be back with the Steins. "It's very strange to be back again, lots has changed in the company - it's huge now," he said.

Ripley has introduced a new menu including dishes such as potted shrimps with brown toast and lemon (£5.60), salt and pepper prawns with garlic and chilli (£5.60), Cornish fish stew (£10.50) and mackerel escabeche (£5.60).

"We're serving a range of sharing dishes - lots of seafood and oysters. Rick's new Spanish cookbook is coming out soon so we'll have dishes from the book to complement the launch," said Ripley.

Rick Stein added: "I'm really happy to have Paul back. There's nothing he doesn't know about cooking seafood. It'll be a joy to have him cooking and chatting to customers as he does."

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By Kerstin Kühn

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